Adobo Marinated Flank Steak Fajitas

I realize that I’m being Johnny-Come-Lately with all the chipotle stuff recently, but I’m not adding a little chipotle powder or a squirt of sauce into a recipe. I’m using the adobo sauce that Arthur Aguirre turned me onto when he added it to coleslaw and it blew my mind. Arthur is a guest writer here and started his own blog, MajorLeagueGrilling.com, that features some incredible stuff. Adobo sauce is so good that I make a special trip to a different grocery store than I normally go to because the one a half mile from my house doesn’t carry it.

Something else to take away from this recipe is how great flank steak is. It’s a fairly inexpensive cut of beef that is almost ideally suited for fajitas. But you have to be careful when cooking flank steak. See how the grain of the meat runs like thick ropes down the length of the cut:

Fibrous Flank Steak

If you don’t cut across those meat fibers, it will be like eating rope so make sure to cut across the grain when the time comes (don’t slice it now):

Make sure to slice across the grain

If you’re unsure on what adobo sauce is, look for a can of chipotle peppers in adobo sauce in the Latin food section of your local grocer. If they don’t carry it, find some place that does and grab a few of the small cans to keep on hand. Here’s what I used for the recipe:

Chipotle Peppers in Adobo

Those that have worked with this magical stuff know that it is pretty spicy and worry that it will make the meat too spicy. The meat by itself will have a nice kick, but when put in a tortilla shell with cheese, peppers, onions, avocado and tomatoes, it needs to have a lot of kick to stand up to that. Some are wondering why I went with adobo plus the Crawdad’s Classics Hot Sauce since the adobo is so hot. Basically because the heat profile will be more complex. Not to mention that I really enjoy spicy food and wanted to take this to another level.

Slice the orange and lime:

Sliced Orange and Lime

Combine all marinade ingredients (reserving the other half of the lime) in a bowl except for the steak and mix thoroughly:

The Marinade Mixed

Then put the steak and the marinade in a bag and place in the fridge for a few hours up to overnight. Other Ingredients:1 yellow bell pepper, quartered, seeds, stem and white flesh removed 2 thick slices of onion 1 avocado, sliced 2 roma tomatoes, rough chopped 1/2 lime (reserved from the marinade) Grated cheese 1/4 cup olive oil Tortillas Makes enough for two, or in my case, dinner for one! First, quarter the yellow pepper and remove the stem, white flesh and seeds:

Quartered Pepper

Second, peal and slice the onion in thick, round slices. Then spear the slices with two wooden skewers (you might want to soak the skewers in water for about 30 minutes – You’ll understand why in a minute):

Onions Sliced and Skewered

Now is a good time to slice the avocado and chop the tomatoes and get that other half of the lime out from the marinade:

Toppings Prepped

Prep the grill for high heat grilling. We’re not doing anything low and slow or indirect here. Place the peppers and onions right over the coals:

Peppers and Onions Grilling

Flip them as they get a nice, smoky char on the outside:

Charring Nicely

When the onion looks like this on the bottom, flip it:

Mmmmm, Grilled Onion

When both sides of the onion and pepper are charred, remove from the heat and set aside. The thicker of the two onion slices took longer to char, and in the process the skewers actually burned through (hence the need for soaking):

More Grilled Onion

Once they have cooled, slice the peppers and pull the onions apart:

Ready for the Fajita

Hit each side of the flank steak with a heavy dose of coarse salt and place over the hot coals:

Sizzling Flank Steak

Flank steak is not very thick and should not be cooked beyond medium or it will be shoe leather, so all you want is a quick sear on each side. After about 90 seconds I rotated to get some nice grill marks and flipped:

Cross Hatched

Rinse and repeat:

Charred on the other side

Remove from the heat and let rest so the juices inside can calm down and redistribute throughout the meat. In the mean time, prepare the fajitas. Place a tortilla down and cover half of it with a healthy pinch of shredded cheese and top with some roasted peppers and onions:

Assembling the Fajita

Then slice the steak across the grain in thin strips:

Wonderful Flank Steak

I couldn’t help but sample some of that beefy deliciousness and the flavor profile was outstanding. It was spicy, citrusy (is that a word) and a little sweet all at the same time. Layer the flank steak slices on the fajita:

That Looks So Good

Then add some avocado, tomato and add some fresh lime juice before another layer of cheese:

Creamy Avocado SlicesA Drizzle of LimeA Final Layer of Cheese to Cement all the Ingredients Together

Fold the tortilla over and brush with olive oil:

Brushed with Oil

Repeat this with another tortilla and place them both on the grill over the hot coals, oil side down:

Watch Out for Flare Ups from the Oil Dripping Down

Brush the other side with oil and stay close. It doesn’t take long for the shells to crisp up and brown so check them often or they will burn. When they are browned, flip over, being careful not to send the contents of the shell all over the grill grate:

Browned and Melty

Once both sides are browned, and the cheese is all melty, remove from the grill and plate:
Crispy tortilla, creamy avocado, melty cheese, smoky peppers and onions, juicy tomatoes, and spicy flank steak. Wow… This recipe pairs nicely with this Schlafly Yakima Wheat:
If you have any questions, feel free to leave them below or shoot me an email. If you liked this adobo marinated flank steak fajitas recipe, and would like to see similar grilling recipes with beef, click here. Also, you can follow the Grillin Fools on their Facebook page where you can post your grilling own pictures, share grilling recipes or join the general grilling conversation. You can also follow them on Twitter @GrillinFool

Combine all the ingredients for the marinade in a plastic bag and refrigerate for 2-24 hours

When it comes time to make the fajitas, remove the meat from the marinade, and let stand on the counter to come to room temperature and discard the bag and marinade.

Fajita Preparation

Stem, seed, and quarter the peppers

Slice the onion into thick slices

Skin and slice the avocado, chop the tomato and cut the lime in half

Place the peppers and onions over a medium high to high heat grill

When the peppers and onions have charred nicely on each side remove from the heat

Hit each side of the flank steak with a heavy dose of course salt and place on the grill

Grill no more than medium rare - A quick sear on each side should do it

Remove the steak from the grill and let rest for three minutes and then slice across the grain

Lay out the fajita shells flat and cover one half of one side with shredded cheese, a layer of: peppers, onions, steak, avocado, tomato and then a drizzle of lime juice followed by another layer of cheese and fold the tortilla shell over to make the fajita

Brush the top of the fajita with olive oil and place oiled side down on the grill and brush the other side with oil

Watch the grill closely as the shells will cook quickly

When the bottom is browned and crispy, flip over and repeat on the other side

When both sides are browned and crispy, and the cheese is melty, remove from the heat and plate allowing to rest as the inside will be similar to molten magma

Scott Thomas

Scott Thomas, the Original Grillin’ Fool, was sent off to college with a suitcase and a grill where he overcooked, undercooked and burned every piece of meat he could find. After thousands of failures, and quite a few successes, nearly two decades later he started a website to show step by step, picture by picture, foolproof instructions on how to make great things out of doors so that others don’t have to repeat the mistakes he’s made on the grill.